Bracket device

ABSTRACT

A bracket device includes a bracket and a connecting member. The bracket includes a longitudinal wall with an end portion. The connecting member can arrive at either of a first position and a second position with respect to the longitudinal wall and includes a connecting feature for connecting with a fixing member. The connecting member is away from the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the first position, and is close to the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the second position.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a bracket structure and more particularly to a bracket device for use with a slide rail.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A bracket is typically used in a rack (cabinet) system to mount a slide rail on a post of a rack, and the bracket itself is mounted on the post through a pin, a screw, or the like. U.S. Pat. No. 7,357,362 B2, for example, discloses a bracket positioning structure. According to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 of this US patent, a bracket (1) is mounted to a mounting hole (71) of a post (7) through a pin (2) or bolt (31) that works with a connecting portion (3) of the bracket.

It can be known from the above that, in the prior art, the connecting portion (3) of the bracket is stationary. As market demands vary, it is worthwhile to develop a different bracket product.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a bracket device whose connecting mechanism is not stationary.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a bracket device includes a bracket and a connecting member. The bracket includes a longitudinal wall with an end portion. The connecting member can arrive at either of a first position and a second position. The connecting member is away from the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the first position, and is close to the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the second position.

Preferably, the bracket includes an end wall bent with respect to the longitudinal wall, and the bracket device further includes a mounting member disposed on the end wall.

Preferably, the connecting member is movably mounted on the longitudinal wall and is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the bracket.

Preferably, the bracket device further includes an elastic member for applying an elastic force to the connecting member and thereby keeping the connecting member at the first position.

Preferably, the connecting member and the bracket include a first position-limiting feature and a second position-limiting feature respectively, and the two position-limiting features are configured to work with each other.

Preferably, the mounting member is configured to be mounted on a post.

Preferably, the connecting member includes a connecting feature, and a fixing member can have a portion thereof extend from a first side of the post to a second side of the post and connect threadedly to the connecting feature, thereby keeping the connecting member at the second position and pressed against the second side of the post.

Preferably, the connecting member is longitudinally displaceable from the first position to the second position while the fixing member is being threadedly connected to the connecting feature.

Preferably, the bracket device is adapted to mount a slide rail on the post. The mounting member is configured to be mounted to a first mounting hole of the post. The connecting member is away from the post when at the first position, and is close to the post when at the second position. The connecting feature of the connecting member is configured to connect threadedly with the portion of the fixing member when the portion of the fixing member passes through a second mounting hole of the post.

Preferably, the bracket device further includes a blocking member pivotally connected to the longitudinal wall of the bracket. When the mounting member is mounted to the first mounting hole of the post and the blocking member is pivoted to a blocking position, the blocking member is locked to the post.

Preferably, when the blocking member is at the blocking position, the blocking portion of the blocking member is adjacent to the mounting member.

Preferably, the connecting feature is a screw thread, and the fixing member is a screw connectable to the connecting member through the screw thread.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing that the bracket device according to an embodiment of the present invention can be used to mount a slide rail assembly on a rack;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the slide rail assembly according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the bracket device and a slide rail of the slide rail assembly according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 shows that the bracket device according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used to mount the slide rail on a rack of a first type, and that a fixing member has yet to be connected to a connecting member of the bracket device;

FIG. 5 shows that the bracket device according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used to mount the slide rail on the rack of first type, with the fixing member partially connected to the connecting member of the bracket device;

FIG. 6 shows that the bracket device according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used to mount the slide rail on the rack of first type, with the fixing member completely connected to the connecting member of the bracket device; and

FIG. 7 shows that the bracket device according to the embodiment of the present invention can be used to mount the slide rail on a rack of a second type, and that a fixing member is completely connected to the connecting member of the bracket device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a slide rail assembly 20 can be mounted on a rack 25 via a bracket device 22 and another bracket device 24. The bracket device 22 is detailed below to demonstrate the features of this embodiment of the invention.

As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the bracket device 22 includes a bracket 26, a connecting member 28, and preferably also a mounting member 30. Here, two mounting members 30 are shown by way of example only; the present invention imposes no limitation on the number of the mounting member(s) 30.

The bracket 26 includes a longitudinal wall 32 to be connected (e.g., fixedly connected) to a slide rail 20 a of the slide rail assembly 20. The longitudinal wall 32 has an end portion 32 a. Preferably, the bracket 26 further includes an end wall 34 bent with respect to the end portion 32 a of the longitudinal wall 32. Preferably, the end wall 34 is substantially perpendicularly connected to the longitudinal wall 32.

The mounting member 30 is adjacent to the end portion 32 a of the longitudinal wall 32 and is shown herein as arranged on the end wall 34 by way of example. Preferably, a base 38 is disposed on one side (e.g., the front side) of the end wall 34, and the mounting member 30 is connected to the base 38 and has a portion extending from the base 38 to the opposite side (e.g., the rear side) of the end wall 34. Preferably, the end wall 34 has a through hole 36 in communication with the aforesaid two sides of the end wall 34, and the mounting member 30 extends from the base 38 on one side of the end wall 34 through the through hole 36 to the opposite side of the end wall 34.

The connecting member 28 can be moved with respect to the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26. Here, the connecting member 28 is movably mounted on the longitudinal wall 32 by way of example. The connecting member 28 includes a connecting feature 39. Preferably, the connecting member 28 is a threaded base, and the connecting feature 39 is a screw thread.

Preferably, the bracket device 22 further includes an elastic element 40 for applying an elastic force to the connecting member 28. Preferably, the elastic member 40 has two ends connected respectively to a first connecting portion 41 a of the connecting member 28 and a second connecting portion 41 b of the longitudinal wall 32. The first connecting portion 41 a and the second connecting portion 41 b may be projecting hooks but are not necessarily so in practice. Preferably, the connecting member 28 and the longitudinal wall 32 include respectively a first position-limiting feature 42 and a second position-limiting feature 44, which are configured to work with each other. Here, one of the first and second position-limiting features is a longitudinal hole (or longitudinal groove), and the other is a projection. For example, the connecting member 28 has the longitudinal hole, and the projection extends through a portion of the longitudinal hole, is connected to the longitudinal wall 32, and lies between two end walls of the longitudinal hole.

Preferably, the bracket device 22 further includes a blocking member 46 pivotally connected to the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26, and an elastic arm 47 for applying an elastic force to the blocking member 46 and thereby keeping the blocking member 46 at a blocking position. For example, the blocking member 46 is pivotally connected to a lug 50 on the longitudinal wall 32 through a shaft 48.

Referring to FIG. 4, the slide rail 20 a is mounted on a first post 52 of the rack via the bracket device 22. More specifically, the first post 52 includes a plurality of mounting holes that are vertically arranged. A first mounting hole 52 a and a second mounting hole 52 b are referred to in the following description by way of example.

The mounting member 30 of the bracket device 22 is configured to be mounted to the first mounting hole 52 a of the first post 52. For example, the mounting member 30 of the bracket device 22 is passed through the first mounting hole 52 a, with the end wall 34 of the bracket 26 pressed against the first post 52. Preferably, the base 38 has a through bore 54, which corresponds in position to the through hole 36 in the end wall 34 and the second mounting hole 52 b in the first post 52. Preferably, the wall of the through bore 54 has a corresponding connecting feature 54 a, such as a screw thread. A fixing member 56 (e.g., a screw) can have a portion thereof extend through the second mounting hole 52 b of the first post 52 and connect threadedly to the connecting feature 39 of the connecting member 28. The fixing member 56 preferably has a head 56 a and a body 56 b, wherein the head 56 a is lager than the body 56 b in size and the body 56 b is a threaded rod. FIG. 4 shows the connecting member 28 at a first position P1 with respect to the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26, and the connecting member 28 is preferably kept at the first position P1 by the elastic force applied by the elastic member 40 to the connecting member 28. The connecting member 28 is away from the end portion 32 a of the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26 or the first post 52 when at the first position P1.

As shown in FIG. 4, FIG. 5, and FIG. 6, the head 56 a of the fixing member 56 is larger in size than the through bore 54 of the base 38, the through hole 36 of the end wall 34, or the second mounting hole 52 b of the first post 52. Here, the head 56 a of the fixing member 56 is larger in size than the through bore 54 of the base 38 (see FIG. 4) by way of example only. The body 56 b of the fixing member 56 can be passed through the through bore 54 of the base 38, the through hole 36 of the end wall 34, and the second mounting hole 52 b of the first post 52 and be threadedly connected to the connecting feature 39 of the connecting member 28. While the fixing member 56 is being threadedly connected to the connecting feature 39, the connecting member 28 is longitudinally displaced from the first position P1 in a direction D with respect to the bracket 26, and the longitudinal displacement continues until the connecting member 28 reaches a second position P2.

As shown in FIG. 6, the connecting member 28 at the second position P2 is close to the end portion 32 a of the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26 or the first post 52. Hence, it can be known from the above that the connecting member 28 can be held at the second position P2 and kept pressed against the second side of the first post 52 by passing a portion of the body 56 b of the fixing member 56 from the first side Si (such as but not limited to the front side) of the first post 52 through the second mounting hole 52 b to the second side S2 (such as but not limited to the rear side) of the first post 52 and by connecting this portion threadedly to the connecting feature 39 of the connecting member 28. Preferably, when the mounting member 30 is mounted in the first mounting hole 52 a of the first post 52 and the blocking member 46 is at the blocking position due to the elastic force of the elastic arm 47, a blocking portion 46 a of the blocking member 46 is adjacent to the mounting member 30 and locked to the first post 52 such that the bracket 26 is mounted on the first post 52 in a reliable manner. It is worth mentioning that the elastic member 40 stores a certain amount of elastic force when the connecting member 28 is at the second position P2. Therefore, if the fixing member 56 is subsequently removed (to meet assembly needs, for example), the connecting member 28 will be brought back to the first position P1 by the elastic force released from the elastic member 40.

According to the above, the connecting member 28 can be moved with respect to the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26, and this allows the bracket device 22 to adapt to posts of different thicknesses. In FIG. 6, for example, the bracket device 22 is adapted to the first post 52, which has a first thickness T1. When the mounting member 30 is mounted on the first post 52, the end wall 34 of the bracket 26 is on the first side S1 of the first post 52, and the connecting member 28 can then be pressed against the second side S2 of the first post 52 to mount the bracket device 22 securely on the first post 52.

Thanks to the movability of the connecting member 28 with respect to the longitudinal wall 32 of the bracket 26, the bracket device 22 can also be adapted to a second post 58 of a second thickness T2 as shown in FIG. 7, wherein the second thickness T2 is greater than the first thickness T1 by way of example. When the mounting member 30 is mounted on the second post 58, the end wall 34 of the bracket 26 is on the first side S1 of the second post 58, and the connecting member 28 can then be pressed against the second side S2 of the second post 58 to mount the bracket device 22 securely on the second post 58.

To sum up, the bracket device disclosed herein has preferably the following features:

-   -   1. The connecting member 28 of the bracket device is movable         with respect to the bracket 26. This configuration allows the         bracket device 22 to adapt to posts of different thicknesses.     -   2. When the bracket device 22 is mounted on the post 52 or 58         through the mounting member 30, the end wall 34 of the bracket         26 is on the first side S1 of the post 52 or 58. The connecting         member 28 can then be pressed against the second side S2 of the         post 52 or 58 to mount the bracket device 22 securely on the         post.

While the present invention has been disclosed through the preferred embodiments described above, it should be understood that those embodiments are not intended to be restrictive of the scope of the invention. The scope of patent protection sought by the applicant is defined by the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A bracket device, comprising: a bracket including a longitudinal wall; a mounting member adjacent to an end portion of the longitudinal wall; and a connecting member movably mounted on the longitudinal wall and configured to arrive at either of a first position and a second position; wherein the connecting member is away from the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the first position; wherein the connecting member is close to the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the second position.
 2. The bracket device of claim 1, wherein the bracket includes an end wall bent with respect to the longitudinal wall, and the mounting member is disposed on the end wall.
 3. The bracket device of claim 2, wherein the mounting member is configured to be mounted on a post.
 4. The bracket device of claim 3, wherein the connecting member includes a connecting feature, and the connecting feature is configured to connect threadedly with a portion of a fixing member when the portion of the fixing member passes through the post from a first side of the post to a second side of the post, thereby keeping the connecting member at the second position and pressed against the second side of the post.
 5. The bracket device of claim 4, wherein the connecting member is longitudinally displaceable from the first position to the second position while the fixing member is being threadedly connected to the connecting feature.
 6. The bracket device of claim 1, further comprising an elastic member for applying an elastic force to the connecting member.
 7. The bracket device of claim 1, wherein the connecting member and the bracket include a first position-limiting feature and a second position-limiting feature respectively, and the two position-limiting features are configured to work with each other.
 8. The bracket device of claim 1, further comprising a blocking member pivotally connected to the longitudinal wall of the bracket, wherein when the blocking member is at a blocking position, a blocking portion of the blocking member is adjacent to the mounting member.
 9. A bracket device, comprising: a bracket including a longitudinal wall with an end portion; and a connecting member configured to arrive at either of a first position and a second position with respect to the longitudinal wall, wherein the connecting member includes a connecting feature for connecting with a fixing member; wherein the connecting member is away from the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the first position; wherein the connecting member is close to the end portion of the longitudinal wall of the bracket when at the second position.
 10. The bracket device of claim 9, wherein the bracket includes an end wall bent with respect to the end portion of the longitudinal wall, and the bracket device further comprises a mounting member disposed on the end wall.
 11. The bracket device of claim 9, wherein the connecting member is movably mounted on the longitudinal wall and is longitudinally displaceable with respect to the bracket.
 12. The bracket device of claim 9, further comprising an elastic member for applying an elastic force to the connecting member and thereby keeping the connecting member at the first position.
 13. The bracket device of claim 9, wherein the connecting member and the bracket include a first position-limiting feature and a second position-limiting feature respectively, and the two position-limiting features are configured to work with each other.
 14. The bracket device of claim 10, further comprising a blocking member pivotally connected to the longitudinal wall of the bracket, wherein when the blocking member is at a blocking position, a blocking portion of the blocking member is adjacent to the mounting member.
 15. The bracket device of claim 9, wherein the connecting feature is a screw thread, and the fixing member is a screw connectable to the connecting member through the screw thread.
 16. A bracket device adapted to mount a slide rail on a post, the bracket device comprising: a bracket including a longitudinal wall and an end wall, wherein the longitudinal wall is adapted to be connected to the slide rail, and the end wall is substantially perpendicularly connected to the longitudinal wall; a mounting member disposed on the end wall; and a connecting member configured to arrive at either of a first position and a second position with respect to the longitudinal wall, wherein the connecting member includes a connecting feature; wherein the mounting member is configured to be mounted to a first mounting hole of the post; wherein the connecting member is away from the post when at the first position; wherein the connecting member is close to the post when at the second position; wherein the connecting feature of the connecting member is configured to connect threadedly with a portion of a screw when the portion of the screw passes through a second mounting hole of the post.
 17. The bracket device of claim 16, wherein the connecting member is longitudinally displaceable from the first position to the second position while the screw is being threadedly connected to the connecting feature of the connecting member.
 18. The bracket device of claim 16, further comprising an elastic member for applying an elastic force to the connecting member.
 19. The bracket device of claim 16, wherein the connecting member and the bracket include a first position-limiting feature and a second position-limiting feature respectively, and the two position-limiting features are configured to work with each other.
 20. The bracket device of claim 16, further comprising a blocking member pivotally connected to the longitudinal wall of the bracket, wherein when the mounting member is mounted to the first mounting hole of the post and the blocking member is pivoted to a blocking position, the blocking member is locked to the post. 